Pakistan

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Muhammad Shoaib Khan visited the proposed routes of Muharram processions in the federal capital.

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti has declared that the province will no longer tolerate instability, reaffirming peace, prosperity, and development as the government’s foremost priorities.

Pakistan and the United States have decided to conclude trade talks focused on reciprocal tariffs next week after a virtual meeting between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The negotiations are part of a broader push to reset economic ties at a time of shifting geopolitical alignments and Pakistan’s efforts to avoid steep US duties on exports. “Both sides showed satisfaction on the ongoing negotiations and resolved to conclude the trade negotiations next week,” the finance ministry said in a statement, adding that a longer-term strategic and investment partnership is also under discussion. “The discussion focused on meaningful engagement in trade, investment and deepening economic ties mutually beneficial to both sides, with technical-level trade-related discussions to be concluded next week,” it added. Pakistan faces a 29 per cent tariff on exports to the US under President Donald Trump’s measures to target countries with large trade surpluses with the US. Pakista...

Posts from users on multiple social media platforms on Wednesday shared a video, claiming that it showed people in Qatar protesting against a United States air base. However, the video is from May, when people in Libya were protesting against their government. Today, Iran’s National Security Council confirmed that it carried out a retaliatory missile strike on the US military base at Al Udeid in Qatar. The attack came in response to American airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities. In its official statement, Iran emphasised that the number of missiles launched matched the number of bombs used by the US, framing it as a proportional response. The council also clarified that the strike did not pose any threat to Qatar, describing the Gulf nation as a “friendly and brotherly country”. A video was shared today on X by a pro-military account, based on its bio, past posts and profile picture, showing people protesting. The caption of the post said: “For the first time in history, the Qatari people are protesting, a...

Life-saving childhood vaccination coverage has stalled in recent decades, leaving millions of children at risk for deadly diseases with Pakistan having the highest number of children with zero doses in South Asia after India, according to a new study by British medical journal Lancet. The Lancet is a 200-year-old peer-reviewed weekly medical journal from the United Kingdom. Since its launch, the journal has expanded into a family of more than 20 speciality journals and has set up several global Lancet Commissions on various important issues in medicine and healthcare. In a press release issued a day ago, the journal said that since its inception in 1974, the World Health Organisation’s Essential Programme on Immunisation (EPI) achieved “unprecedented progress”, averting the deaths of an estimated 154 million children worldwide through routine childhood vaccination. However, it said that as per a major new analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study Vaccine Coverage Collaborators, “Despite the progress of...

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari has claimed that PTI founder Imran Khan has been sidelined by his own party and family.

A delegation from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), led by former AJK Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, on Wednesday officially joined the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari at Zardari House, Karachi.

Top-ranked Pakistani duo Nasir Iqbal and Noor Zaman stormed into the men’s final of the 2nd Asian Doubles Squash Championship after beating hosts Malaysia 2-1 in the semi-finals on Wednesday. The Malaysian duo of Duncan Lee and Syafiq Kamal took the first set 11-10 at the Jalan Stadium in Sarawak. But Zaman and Iqbal made a strong comeback to win the next two sets 11-9 in a thrilling 69-minute game. The duo will face India in the finals tomorrow. In Tuesday’s quarter-final, Pakistan defeated Korea 2-1 in a quick 37-minute game. Earlier this month, Zaman and Iqbal were in Malaysia for the 23rd Asian Individual Squash Championships, where Iqbal outclassed Lai Cheuk Nam of Hong Kong to advance to the quarter-finals while Zaman lost to Joachim Chuah of Malaysia 3-2 in their pre-quarterfinal. Zaman was crowned men’s champion at the U23 World Squash Championships in April after a stellar comeback against Egypt’s Karim El Torkey.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday reiterated his government’s strong commitment to revitalizing Pakistan’s agriculture sector through sustainable reforms aimed at boosting productivity and supporting farmers.

Nasa retiree turned private astronaut Peggy Whitson was launched on the fifth flight to orbit of her career early on Wednesday, joined by crewmates from India, Poland and Hungary heading for their countries’ first visit to the International Space Station (ISS). The astronaut team lifted off from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at about 2:30am EDT (11:30am PKT), beginning the latest mission organized by Texas-based startup Axiom Space in partnership with Elon Musk’s rocket venture SpaceX. The four-member crew was carried aloft on a towering SpaceX launch vehicle consisting of a Crew Dragon capsule perched atop a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket. Live video showed the towering spacecraft streaking into the night sky over Florida’s Atlantic coast trailed by a brilliant yellowish plume of fiery exhaust. Cameras inside the crew compartment beamed footage of the four astronauts strapped into their pressurized cabin, seated calmly side by side in helmeted white-and-black flight suits as their spacec...

The federal capital and surrounding areas experienced rainfall on Wednesday morning as the monsoon season officially began across the country.

Punjab is predicted to receive 25 per cent more monsoon rains this year, Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said on Wednesday. Separately, Karachi is expected to receive rainfall on June 27 (Friday), the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said — potentially ending an ongoing wave of extreme heat and humid weather. The PMD has already forecast monsoon rain across the country from Wednesday, June 25. Monsoon rains fall across the region from June to September, offering respite from the summer heat and are crucial to replenishing water supplies. Monsoon rains have commenced in Punjab and first spell will continue till July 1, the PDMA said in a statement, adding that rainfall with strong winds and thunderstorms are predicted in most districts of the province. Relief Commissioner Punjab Nabeel Javed has instructed commissioners and deputy commissioners across the province to remain alert. He said all relevant departments including Rescue 1122 and WASA are on al...

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday ordered a reduction in the duration of the LLB program from five years to four, as part of broader legal education reforms.

Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed a $350 million agreement for the Women Inclusive Finance Sector Programme, aimed at enhancing women's participation in economic activities through increased access to finance and employment opportunities.

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has approved a reduction of Rs1.

ENGLAND opener Ben Duckett plays a shot during the first Test against India at Headingley on Tuesday.—Reuters LEEDS: A superb century from Ben Duckett helped steer England to a sensational five-wicket win in the first Test against India after a thrilling day five on Tuesday, the hosts reaching a target of 371 — the 10th highest successful run chase in Test history. Having turned the match on its head at Headingley after India had been 430-3 in their first innings, England appeared to be cruising to a dramatic win as openers Duckett and Zak Crawley eased their side to lunch on 117-0 in their second innings. Duckett continued his imperious form with another four through the covers to reach his sixth Test hundred, before Crawley fell for 65, their 188-run partnership the second-highest England opening fourth-innings stand in Tests. Two wickets in two balls — Duckett and Harry Brook — dragged India back into the enthralling contest and when Ben Stokes fell for 33 attempting an ambitious reverse sweep, England’s h...

US airstrikes did not destroy Iran’s nuclear capability and only set it back by a few months, according to a preliminary US intelligence assessment, as a shaky ceasefire brokered by US President Donald Trump took hold between Iran and Israel. Earlier on Tuesday, both Iran and Israel signaled that the air war between the two nations had ended, at least for now, after Trump publicly scolded them for violating a ceasefire he announced at 5am GMT (10am PKT). As the two countries lifted civilian restrictions after 12 days of war — which the US joined with an attack on Iran’s uranium-enrichment facilities — each sought to claim victory. Trump said over the weekend that the US deployment of 30,000-pound bombs had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme. But that claim appeared to be contradicted by an initial assessment by one of his administration’s intelligence agencies, according to three people familiar with the matter. One of the sources said Iran’s enriched uranium stocks had not been eliminated, and the countr...

Four people were killed and as many injured after an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded on Wednesday in the Pewar area of Parachinar in Upper Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. DPO Habibullah said police teams reached the site of the explosion in Sharamkhel, Pewar, and launched an investigation. He confirmed that four people were killed and four others were injured in the explosion. The medical superintendent of DHQ Parachinar Hospital Mir Hassan Jan identified the victims as Nawab Ali, Amir Hussain, Hidayat Hussain, and Manzar Ali. He added the injured namely, Muhammad Konain, Shafaat Hussain, and Hassan Ghulam were provided first aid and have been taken to Peshawar for further treatment. Speaking to media, an injured victim Hassan Ghulam said they were heading towards a hill to collect firewood when the explosion occurred on the roadside. “The incident is very unfortunate. The terrorists should be caught and punished,” he said. Besides his four companions, two horses were also killed in the expl...

ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan was called on by Secretary General of the International Road Transport Union (IRU), Umberto de Pretto.

United States President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that China can continue to purchase Iranian oil after Israel and Iran agreed to a ceasefire, a move that the White House clarified did not indicate a relaxation of US sanctions. “China can now continue to purchase oil from Iran. Hopefully, they will be purchasing plenty from the US, also,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, just days after he ordered US bombings of three Iranian nuclear sites. Trump was drawing attention to no attempts by Iran so far to close the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers, as a closure would have been hard for China, the world’s top importer of Iranian oil, a senior White House official told Reuters. “The president continues to call on China and all countries to import our state-of-the-art oil rather than import Iranian oil in violation of US sanctions,” the official said. After the ceasefire announcement, Trump’s comments on China were another bearish signal for oil prices, which fell nearly 6 per cent on Tuesday. Any relaxation o...